Ne-Yo Turns To Mom For Child Rearing Advice

There’s a new lady in town who will have R&B crooner Ne-Yo‘s full attention: his soon-to-be-born daughter.

“I’m ready, man,” the singer-songwriter, 30, tells PEOPLE of expecting his first child in January with girlfriend Monyetta Shaw.

“I’m definitely reading books and paying attention to my mom a lot. My mom is the caretaker, so any question that I have, I’m sure she’ll be able to answer.”

Mom’s best advice so far? “Know how to toe the line between being a friend and parent. You don’t want to be too much of a friend but you don’t want to be so much of a parent that your child doesn’t have a friend in you.”

Between choosing baby names — “We like Madeline right now” — and prepping for the big day (“I gotta be there when my first born is born, no question”), the Grammy-winner is also preparing for the October release of his fourth album, Libra Scale.

During the Atlanta stop of his Champagne Life tour, a partnership with Moët & Chandon, the multiplatinum superstar spoke excitedly about his new music. The album, which Ne-Yo originally planned as an actual film, was split into seven parts which will each be depicted in a series of extended music videos.

Says Ne-Yo, “We decided to chop the script up and tell the story through the videos. This is the most different album I’ve recorded to date. The concept is asking yourself if you had to choose between love, money, power and fame, which would you choose?”

Ne-Yo’s answer is quite clear in his vow to take a self-imposed paternity leave after his daughter is born.

“I’m gonna take a little bit of time off, maybe a month or so. For me to be there and then leave the next day? I can’t do it like that… I’d love to take more time but I gotta make sure that college tuition gets paid so I gotta be back on that road,” he says with a laugh. “I’m looking forward to the journey.”

Aww he seems like such a good, nice guy! I’m sure he will be a wonderful and fun father to his little baby (is it a girl? sounds like it!). And I LOVE the name Madeline! It’s so pretty!

CelebBabyLover
on September 7th, 2010

Erika, yes, it’s a girl: “There’s a new lady in town who will have R&B crooner Ne-Yo‘s full attention: his soon-to-be-born daughter.”

Shannon- What do you mean by that? Do you mean you thought they’re actually married? Or do you mean you didn’t think they were together anymore?

Anyway, Ne-Yo sounds very excited about fatherhood!

Brenda
on September 7th, 2010

I’ve seen him in interviews and read a few articles about him. I think he is the real deal. When he spoke of having his child, he seemed genuinely in love with her before she even gets here. There is also a lot of talent in this young man. I think he’ll be around a while. Congratulations to the happy parents to be.

Shannon
on September 7th, 2010

This is what he (allegedly) said:
“I have a friend. Not a girlfriend. She’s carrying my child but knows I can’t commit. She doesn’t mind other women.”

His baby mamma must be a generous woman. She has to deal with a whole lot– fear of commitment, going out with other women, and now with an intention to rely on his mother for parenting advice. Good luck with that.

Tami
on September 7th, 2010

This is not his first child, he has a son with another woman….unless he found out that it wasn’t his…

meghan
on September 7th, 2010

@Mira What’s wrong with relying on your parent for advice? After all, they’ve been there. Like with all new parents, I’m sure as he gets more comfortable in his new role, he won’t rely on her as much as he thinks. We eventually find our own way.

@Tami I think it’s been reported elsewhere that he was not the father of that child and he has been more or less cut out of the childs life. I imagine it’s a painful chapter that he doesn’t want to think about. At least that’s how I would feel if I loved a child and they were taken from my life.

Mira
on September 7th, 2010

@Meghan: There are two reasons why this comment rubs me the wrong way– 1) many men do very little else to help rear a child besides using a few lines they heard from their mothers to criticize the mother of the child; 2) rules for how to take care of a newborn change a lot, actually, over time, so his mother is likely to have a lot of “wrong” answers to questions. For example, 30-40 years ago breastfeeding was almost discouraged, babies were placed to sleep on their tummies, newborns were given water and fed on a schedule rather than on demand. So, for newborns it’s a much, much better idea to rely on advice from your pediatrician, rather than from your mother. Your mother can be much more of a resource once you start dealing with issues such as discipline, confidence, etc.

Persona
on September 7th, 2010

So Ne-Yo’s mom didn’t offer him advice on women and how he shouldn’t date other women while another woman is PREGNANT?
His words. It’s a part of the deal.

CelebBabyLover
on September 8th, 2010

Whether Monyetta is his girlfriend or not, at least it sounds like (going by this article) they’re on very friendly terms and are committed to being good co-parents.🙂